An Inspiring Poem From An Inspiring Person

Charles Thomas (C.T.) Studd was an English missionary to China, India, and Africa. He was the son of a wealthy indigo- planter who had retired from India to a large country house in England. His father had been converted in 1877 when a friend took him to hear D. L. Moody preaching in London and he immediately gave up his pastimes of racing and hunting, and used his home for evangelistic meetings until his death two years later.

Charles and two of his brothers, Kynaston and George, were far from pleased by their father’s efforts to interest them in the gospel. However, unknown to each other, all three were also converted when a visiting preacher went to stay with the Studd family during the summer holidays of 1878. The three brothers excelled at cricket at Cambridge where they achieved a remarkable record of each captaining the cricket team in successive seasons from 1882 to 1884.

In 1884 his brother George was taken seriously ill and Charles was confronted by the question, “What is all the fame and flattery worth …… when a man comes to face eternity?” He had to admit that since his conversion six years earlier he had been in “an unhappy backslidden state.” As a result of the experience he stated, “I know that cricket would not last, and honour would not last, and nothing in this world would last, but it was worth while living for the world to come.”

From then onwards Charles began witnessing to his friends and fellow players and helping his brother Kynaston who had started organizing missions amongst students. Soon he had the joy of leading others to the Lord and he prayed for power to be more effective in proclaiming the gospel. Through the promise contained in Acts 1:8, “Ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you; and ye shall be witnesses unto me….unto the uttermost part of the earth,” he realized that his own zeal and energy were not sufficient and that he had to rely entirely upon God.

Up until that time he had felt content to witness amongst his own associates but after hearing a missionary speaking about the need for workers in China, Charles became increasingly burdened and convicted. Although his friends and relatives tried to dissuade him, Charles knew he was being called to the mission field and he sought an interview with Hudson Taylor, the director of the China Inland Mission and was accepted as an associate member.

For C. T Studd those future years were to see him giving away his family inheritance to help the work of George Muller, D. L. Moody, Dr. Barnardo and others and spending ten years in China where he suffered great hardships to reach remote areas where the gospel had never been heard before.

From 1900-1906 Studd was pastor of a church at Ootacamund in South India and although it was a different situation to the pioneer missionary work in China, his ministry was marked by numerous conversions amongst the British officials and the local community. However, on his return home Studd became concerned about the large parts of Africa that had never been reached with the Gospel and in 1910 he went to the Sudan and was convicted by the lack of Christian witness in central Africa. Out of this concern Studd was led to set up the Heart of Africa Mission and when challenged as to why he was preparing for a life of inevitable hardship he replied, “If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him.”

On his first venture into the Belgian Congo in 1913, Studd established four mission stations in an area inhabited by eight different tribes. Then a serious illness to his wife required his return to England, but when he returned to the Congo in 1916 she had recovered sufficiently to undertake the expansion of the mission into the World Evangelism Crusade with workers in south America, central Asia and the middle East as well as Africa. Supported by his wife’s work of home, Studd built up an extensive missionary outreach based on his center at Ibambi and although she made a short visit to the Congo in 1928 that was the only time they met again since she died in the following year. Two years later, still labouring for the Lord at Ibambi at the age of seventy, Charles Studd died, but his vision for China, India and Africa had expanded to reach the whole unevangelized world.

C.T. Studd is credited with different inspiring quotes in addition to the one mentioned above. For example: “Some want to live within the sound of church or chapel bell; I want to run a rescue shop within a yard of hell,” and “If Jesus Christ is God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him.”

But I recently came across the following poem, a part of which I have been familiar with for years, that I wanted to share with you:

“Two little lines I heard one day,
Traveling along life’s busy way;
Bringing conviction to my heart,
And from my mind would not depart;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, yes only one,
Soon will its fleeting hours be done;
Then, in ‘that day’ my Lord to meet,
And stand before His Judgement seat;
Only one life,’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, the still small voice,
Gently pleads for a better choice
Bidding me selfish aims to leave,
And to God’s holy will to cleave;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, a few brief years,
Each with its burdens, hopes, and fears;
Each with its clays I must fulfill,
living for self or in His will;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

When this bright world would tempt me sore,
When Satan would a victory score;
When self would seek to have its way,
Then help me Lord with joy to say;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Give me Father, a purpose deep,
In joy or sorrow Thy word to keep;
Faithful and true what e’er the strife,
Pleasing Thee in my daily life;
Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Oh let my love with fervor burn,
And from the world now let me turn;
Living for Thee, and Thee alone,
Bringing Thee pleasure on Thy throne;
Only one life, “twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, yes only one,
Now let me say,”Thy will be done”;
And when at last I’ll hear the call,
I know I’ll say “twas worth it all”;
Only one life,’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, ’twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.
And when I am dying, how happy I’ll be,
If the lamp of my life has been burned out for Thee.”

Being a Good Christian Instead of Being Christ-like

Over the last couple of Sundays we have been talking about discipleship. Discipleship is all about my seeking to become more like Jesus. Of course, it stands to reason that if I am to become more like Jesus, then He is the one whose example I should seek to follow.

President Calvin Coolidge once invited friends from his hometown to dine with him at the White House. Unsure of their table manners, the guests decided to imitate the president. They watched closely to see which utensils he used, what foods he ate and when. Their strategy seemed to succeed until coffee was served. Coolidge poured some coffee into his saucer. They did the same. He added sugar and cream. His guests did, too. Then the president bent over and put his saucer on the floor for the cat!

Be careful whose example you follow. It is fine to look to be encouraged by a person who is a “good Christian,” but while I can be blessed to receive their encouragement, I am not to follow their example. It is not enough to follow the example of a person who is a “good Christian,” because we aren’t called to be a “good Christian,” we are called to be like Jesus. Therefore, the only example worth following is that of Jesus.

The Call of God and the Salvation Army Kettle

I just returned home from spending two hours at one of our local grocery stores, ringing the bell for the Salvation Army. Our Lion’s Club volunteered to ring the bell on this Saturday and it is a worthwhile thing for us to do. I have found that it helps the time to pass far more quickly if you greet each person as they come in and as they leave the store. That is what I did today, and my greetings were received in a variety of ways.

All this got me thinking about how God calls out to us and the various responses people give to that call. Now, in ringing the bell, I try to keep it up through-out the entire time I am on duty. In the same way, I believe the call of God is constant. As the Psalmist puts it, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world,” (Psalm 19:1-4a, NIV).

Some folks acknowledged my greeting, while others did not. Some ignored me because they were so focused on getting whatever they had come to the store for, they were oblivious to everything else. Others were obviously aware of my greeting, but chose to ignore it. One young lady tickled me in that when I greeted her and her companion, while her friend did acknowledge me, she, on the other hand, looked and looked everywhere but my direction. She pretended as if she was seeking to find the source of the greeting, but in reality, she was choosing to ignore me.

In the same way, it seems to me, there are people who are so focused on the things of this world that they cannot hear the voice of God calling out to them. Others willfully ignore the voice of God by moving on with an occupation with the things of this world. Still others pretend to be involved in a search for God, while, in reality, they have no real interest in acknowledging Him.

But there were those who did acknowledge me and returned my greeting, much like those who do acknowledge the Lord and respond to His call. But as was true with my greeting of the folks in the store today, so it is true that God calls us to not only acknowledge Him, but to partner with Him.

Those who not only acknowledged me but chose to put money into the kettle, were the ones who drew closest to me today. In the same way, those who are closest to God are not just those who acknowledge His call, but who respond to His call to partner with Him in the eternal difference He is making in our world.

Real Thanksgiving

I just came in from mowing the lawn. “What?” You may be asking, “Why are you mowing the lawn this time of year?”  Simple. I knew it would please my wife, Donna.

I think I could have lived without mowing the lawn. But I couldn’t live without pleasing Donna. You see, I am deeply in love with my wife. She and I have been together a long time and she has done so much for me. I adore her! So, when she kept dropping hints like, “I think the lawn could stand to be mowed one more time before winter sets in,” that was enough for me. I mowed the lawn. And, yeah, she was right, it needed one more going over.

As I was mowing my lawn this morning, I got to thinking that the same reasons I just gave for mowing my lawn are the reasons why we should obey God. We should obey God because we love Him and want to please HIm. Jesus said in John 14:15, “If you love me, you will obey what I command.” We should also obey God because, like my wife was about the lawn, He is right. Finally, we should obey God because of His faithfulness to us and all He has done for us. Which brings me to some thoughts about the Thanksgiving holiday in particular and about thanksgiving in general.

I think we can learn an important lesson about thanksgiving from Jonah, of all people. In Jonah, 2:9,  we read Jonah’s prayer when in the belly of the great fish. Jonah prayed and said, “But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good.”

Jonah had determined in chapter two that he would obey God, something he had been reluctant to do in chapter one. But now, under the chastening hand of God, he determined to obey. And what was his motivation in obeying God? Thanksgiving.

I hope you don’t wait until you find yourself in the fish belly of life before you decide to be thankful AND obedient to God. But hey, if that’s what it takes to get your attention, God will put you there. But only because He knows what’s best for you and wants what is best for you.

My hope and prayer for each of us is that we will learn Jonah’s lesson about thanksgiving so we won’t have to find ourselves in the fish’s belly. Instead, let’s display our thankful hearts by being obedient to God. That is my desire and commitment as I approach this Thanksgiving holiday. I hope it is yours, too.

A Great Book I Recommend

I just finished reading Erwin Lutzer’s book, Making The Best Of A Bad Decision. I honestly cannot remember a book like it, that deals in practical terms what to do when you realize you’ve made a bad decision. But who among us haven’t made a bad decision? That’s why I enjoyed the book so much – I’ve made a lot of bad decisions.

Lutzer starts the book by talking about the worst decision ever made – the decision made by Adam and Eve, which plunged our world into sin and made it possible for the rest of us to make bad decisions.

He then discusses such bad decisions as – choosing second best, marrying the wrong person, crossing a moral boundary, making a bad financial decision, being trapped in a job you hate, and hurting others by your actions.

He concludes with a chapter on how to made right decisions and the worst decisions anyone could ever make – which is to choose to reject God’s offer of forgiveness and eternal life through faith in Christ.

Perhaps the best chapter for me was the one on what to do when you’re hurt others. I have hurt plenty of other people in my time through stupid words or deeds, but what blessed me most was his insights on what to do when you’ve tried to get along and the other person refuses. What about those “loose end” relationships? His thoughts about the last judgement and how God will make all things right between believers in eternity is especially good.

I highly recommend this book, because every one of us have made a wrong decision in life at sometime, and even if you think you haven’t yet, hang on, you eventually will.

Dying To Self

The following article was first shared with me by a lady in one of my former churches who understood well the meaning of dying to self. She had a rare blood disorder which caused her to have to remain in bed 24/7. I would visit her regularly, and knew her to be a faithful prayer warrior. I pass this along to you for your consideration as we relect on our Savior’s words: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” – Luke 9:23 (NIV)

Dying To Self

When you are forgotten or neglected or purposely set at naught, and you sting and hurt with the insult or the oversight, but your heart is happy, being counted worthy to suffer for Christ-that is dying to self.

When your good is evil spoken of, when your wishes are crossed, your advice disregarded, your opinions ridiculed and you refuse to let anger rise in your heart, or even defend yourself, but take all in patient loving silence-that is dying to self.

When you lovingly and patiently bear any disorder, any irregularity, or any annoyance, when you can stand face to face with waste, folly, extravagance, spiritual insensibility, and endure it as Jesus endured it-that is dying to self.

When you are content with any food, any offering, any raiment, any climate, any society, any attitude, any interruption by the will of God-that is dying to self.

When you never care to refer to yourself in conversation, or to record your own good works, or itch after commendation, when you can truly love to be unknown-that is dying to self.

When you see your brother prosper and have his needs met and can honestly rejoice with him in spirit and feel no envy nor question God, while your own needs are far greater and in desperate circumstances-that is dying to self.

When you can receive correction and reproof from one of less stature than yourself, can humbly submit inwardly as well as outwardly, finding no rebellion or resentment rising up within your heart-that is dying to self.

Author Unknown

Shallow Living From The Deeper Life

Through out my years as a pastor, I’ve heard people warn against the possibility of manipulating the work of the Holy Spirit. What they are usually referring to is that we must be careful not to try to orchestrate God’s working but, instead, allow God to move as He desires. I whole-heartedly agree. However, in my experience this type of thinking is too often a spiritual sounding excuse to justify laziness.

Early on in my ministry as a pastor, I was very much an adherent of the “deeper life” movement. I learned much during these years about the need to be filled and led by the Holy Spirit and about the need to guard against doing things in the power of “the flesh.” But I gave myself to this idea to such a degree that I got out of balance. I was so concerned about doing things in the power of the Spirit and avoiding doing things in the power of the flesh, that I often found myself doing nothing.

The correction I needed came to me through a book that I think every Christian ought to read, Real Evangelism, by Bailey Smith. In this book, Smith takes on the excuses Christians give for not trying to reach people for Christ. In a chapter, “Shallow Living From The Deeper Life,” Smith speaks of the fact that if one really wants to deny the flesh, then he should be willing to do the work necessary to reach out to people in the name of Jesus. He contends that to take time to visit with people about Jesus, to risk rejection from others because of your faith, or to put forth the energy necessary to carry out evangelistic events, is all contrary to our natural desire to codle and comfort the flesh. Sometimes the most spiritual thing we can do is to say “no” to the flesh, which wants us to simply be idle, and instead put forth the effort necessary to obey the Great Commission.

Paul tells us in Galatians 5:25, “let us keep in step with the Spirit.” Believe me, as I have learned more about what it means to walk in the Spirit, you will find yourself being very busy at times, because there is so much for us to do in partnership with the Holy Spirit. Sometimes the last thing you will be when led by the Spirit is idle. Instead, you will be busy seeking to lift up Christ. After all, isn’t that what Jesus said would happen when we are empowered by the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8)?

Besides, last time I checked, the Holy Spirit is the sovereign God of the universe. Which means that even if I tried to “manipulate the Spirit,” I will find that is impossible, for God will only do what He wants, no matter what I try.

So what I have settled on is that I seek to look to the Spirit, learn from the Spirit, love by the Spirit, and live by the Spirit, trusting that if I am right with God, His Spirit will put things on my heart that He wants me to do and then I seek to obey. I would encourage you to also seek to learn to “keep in step with the Spirit,” and be prepared to “get busy for Jesus!”

Getting In God’s Way

I am presently reading a book by Erwin Lutzer entitled, “Making The Best Of A Bad Decision.” It is a wonderful book which presses home the fact that God specializes in taking the life resulting from a wrong decision, and turning it into a life that is blessed by Him.

The fact is that while we often make mistakes that we think condemn us to missing out on God’s best, the Bible never speaks of God having in mind anything for us that is less than His best. His will is described in Romans 12:2, for example, as “good, acceptable, and perfect.” God does not have a plan that is “kind of good, sort of acceptable, and less than perfect.”

God’s will is “plan A all the way.” We are either in His will or out of His will. And as we are willing  surrender our lives to Him, God can take even our bad decisions that have forever changed the circumstances of our life, and make them fit into His purposes. But we must be willing to fully surrender our lives to Him in order for that to happen. Remember that before Paul’s description of God’s “good, acceptable and perfect will,” in Romans 12:2, he gives us the admonition in Romans 12:1 to “present our bodies as a living sacrifice to God.”

Lutzer shares the following poem, which very effectively drives home this point:

“As children bring their broken toys,
With tears for us to mend,
I brought my broken dreams to God,
Because He was my friend.

But then instead of leaving Him,
In peace to work alone,
I hung around and tried to help,
With ways that were my own.

At last I snatched them back and cried,
“How can you be so slow?”
“My child,” He said, “What could I do?
You never did let go?”

As long as we are unwilling to take our hands off our life and leave it completely with God, we will be forever getting in His way and preventing us from knowing His best. But as we get out of the way and allow God to have His way, He can take even the broken pieces of our lives and make them into someting beautiful.

A Poem About Our Profession

Came across a great poem that speaks to the difference between what many think being a Christian means and what it really means. Wanted to share it. Be blessed.

When I say “I’m a Christian” I’m not shouting “I’m clean livin.”
I’m whispering “I was lost. Now I’m found and forgiven.”

“When I say “I’m a Christian” I don’t speak of this with pride.
I’m confessing that I stumble and need Christ to be my guide.

“When I say “I’m a Christian” I’m not trying to be strong.
I profess that I’m weak and need his strength to carry on.

“When I say “I’m a Christian” I’m not bragging of success.
I’m admitting that I’ve failed and need God to clean my mess.

“When I say “I’m a Christian” I’m not claiming to be perfect.
My flaws are far too visible but, God believes I’m worth it.

“When I say “I’m a Christian” I still feel the sting of pain.
I have my share of heartaches so I call upon His name.

“When I say “I’m a Christian” I’m not holier than thou.
I’m just a simple sinner who received God’s grace somehow.

The Purpose of the Picture

We just said good-bye to the last members of our small group to leave our home tonight. We had a great time together. In our discussion, we spoke of friendships and about how some friends are great to encourage and support, while other friendships can be draining and depleating.

As we talked, I gave my “there are two kinds of people” speech. My kids know this speech well. So well in fact, that before each of our kids left the house, they could tell when I was going to launch into the speech and would head me off by saying, “I know dad, there are two kinds of people . . .”

In essence, the speech has to do with the idea that there are people in life who pull you up and there are people in life who can pull you down. You need to make sure that the majority of your relationships, indeed, your closest relationships, are with people who pull you up and make you a better person.

Now, as Christians, it is also our call to reach out to others in the effort to pull them up, by being a positive influence on them. But you must be careful that the effort to help pull them up is an effort they cooperate with, or else those you are trying to “pull up” could very well be a negative influence on you and pull you down.

The idea of cooperating with someone who is seeking to pull you up is the picture Paul uses when speaking of the spiritual growth of the Christian in Philippians 3:12 – “I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.” Paul says that through faith in Christ, and my entering into a personal saving relationship with Him, Christ has taken hold of us; and by virtue of His power, He is pulling us up. But if we likewise “take hold of Him,” He can more effectively and easily pull us up to the level He is calling us to as we mature in our relationship with Him.

The great thing about Jesus, which is different for us in our relationships with those we might try to reach out to is that even when we do not cooperate with Him in His work in our lives, we cannot pull Him down, He will eventually pull us up into His presence, where we will be completely like Him for all eternity. Which makes Jesus the best friend of all.

And that is the purpose of the picture.